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The Washington has enforced penalties on a network of several persons and entities charged of hiring Colombian mercenaries to support and educate a militia force in Sudan the United States claims of committing genocide.

Operation Structure

Disclosing the measures on Tuesday, the US Treasury Department stated the operation was largely composed of Colombian citizens and firms.

Numerous of ex-soldiers from Colombia have been recruited to go to Sudan to combat beside the RSF paramilitary group, a group implicated in horrific war crimes encompassing massacres based on ethnicity and widespread kidnappings.

Revelation of Role

The role of these mercenaries was first uncovered the previous year, after an investigation which found that hundreds of retired troops had been recruited to engage in combat – an discovery that led to an unusual statement of regret from the Colombian government.

Colombian ex-soldiers have historically been seen as some of the most in-demand contractors globally due to their considerable warzone knowledge acquired during decades of civil war, familiarity with Nato equipment, and high-level combat training.

Reported Actions

In Sudan, the contractors have reportedly trained underage fighters, provided drone warfare training, and fought directly on the frontlines. One source remarked that instructing minors was "terrible and insane" but noted that "regrettably, war operates that way".

Sanctioned Individuals

Among those targeted was a dual national, a citizen of both Colombia and Italy and former army officer located in the Dubai. The government said he had a pivotal function in recruiting and deploying former Colombian soldiers to Sudan. His spouse, Claudia Oliveros, was penalized as well.

Also on the restricted list was Mateo Andrés Duque Botero, a dual Colombian-Spanish citizen who officials alleged ran a firm accused of handling funds and payroll for the recruitment operation. "In 2024 and 2025, American entities linked to Duque engaged in several money transfers, totalling millions of US dollars," the official announcement noted.

Citizen of Colombia Mónica Muñoz was the fourth individual to be sanctioned, with the entity she oversaw accused of money transfers connected to Duque and his companies.

"The US once more urges foreign parties to halt the flow of monetary and weaponry aid to the combatants," the Treasury stated.

Reaction

Elizabeth Dickinson, senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the measures as a "major" development, noting that "calling out those who are doing the contracting is the right way to go".

Furthermore, the Colombian government has enacted a piece of legislation endorsing the global treaty against mercenarism, designed to limit decades of Colombian involvement in foreign conflicts and change its security approach.

Another expert, a scholar on the subject, called for greater wariness, stating that "sanctions are necessary but insufficient for addressing rampant mercenarism".

"This is a shadow economy and operating from Dubai, which is largely insulated from sanctions," he said. The UAE has been repeatedly implicated of arming the RSF, an accusation it has denied. "More contractors from Colombia are likely," he advised.